Did anyone else encounter the BART station ticket agents enforcing the no bikes on the East Bay bound lines this morning? The ticket agent at 16th and Mission was posted up at the bike gate asking everyone with a bike which direction they were headed. I understand the rules regarding bikes on BART, but this is the first time I actually saw a station agent in the Mission enforcing them.

Annoying, at best. I’m sure there is a legitimate reason as to why they have not done this, but why don’t they dedicate one car during peak hours to be a bike car?

16 Responses to “BART Station Agents Enforcing Bikes on BART Rules?”

[...] BART police actually start busting you for taking your bike on crowded trains? As a Mission Mission reader warns, BART station agents at 16th and Mission were stopping cyclists yesterday to make sure they [...]

I usually commute by bike, but sometimes laziness or logistics get the best of me and I feel like hopping on BART. (Montgomery-Glen Park.) Then I remember the no-bikes-on-BART-at-commute-times rule and I end up leaving my bike at the office. (Thanks, benevolent downtown office building, for having a secure bike room!) Cool, whatever.

But then I see tons o’ bikes going various directions at various stations and I feel silly for following the rules. I guess it bugs me that they are not universally applied. I’m happy to break rules in general (as I often do on my bike commute, hello “stop signs”) but the sometimes-enforcement is frustrating. Now I feel like a whiny old fogey…

I figured that the bike rule was something they would only enforce if there were problems, i.e. people taking bikes on trains that aren’t full aren’t hurting anyone but if you are trying to squeeze you bike onto a full train then they can cite this rule as a reason to make you wait for the next one.

I’m also pretty sure that if you just rode your bike to the embarcadero station and hopped on there you’d probably be okay since the train is likely essentially empty at that point and I’m pretty sure the rules explicitly state that you can get on at that station for trips to the East bay.

So take the opportunity to bike the extra 16 or so blocks and get some good exercise and then hop on the BART.

Bart should run 24 hours a day and should have a dedicated car for bikes. The idea that bikes are barred at precisely the time when people need to get to work is crazy. Bart is a third-rate transportation system. It is a total joke.

Agreed. This is just adding to the pollution problem, making it easier for people to drive and substantially harder for people to bike.

Seriously, ride the subway in Tokyo or London. You can hardly move. SF needs to relax the F up and let bikers help save the planet. BART has plenty or room for bikes. But a dedicated bike car makes perfect sense.

Here is what Michael J Moran told me when I asked a few weeks ago via customer feedback on Bart.gov:

“Regarding a unique car for bikes: Demand for travel on BART during commute periods is extremely high, and all available cars in BART’s fleet are responding to the maximum extent to accommodate this demand. At these times, all seating is quickly occupied with a significant number of passengers standing as well. The ‘no bike’ times have been based on the times passenger loads for the trains are high.

You specifically suggest the dedication of a car for bicycles or using the last car for bikes. This idea has been evaluated by BART staff in the past, and unfortunately, due to operational reasons, dedication of a special car for bikes would be basically impossible. During the peak periods, BART already runs 9-10 car trains when we have enough cars. Our platforms can only accommodate ten car trains, so it’s not possible to add cars to those trains. Also, the position of the cars changes during the day as the train is enlarged or shrunk. In addition, because trains reverse direction once they reach the end of each run, there is no way to guarantee that the last, first, or even middle car of each train would be a bike car.

Confining all bicycles to a single car would create a safety risk as it concentrates too many cyclists into a small area. Actually, permitting them in all but the lead car helps disperse what would be an otherwise crowded condition.

Being rapid “mass public transit”, BART’s purpose is to transport the maximum passengers desiring to board, yet a standard bicycle will take up space that can easily accommodate at least three more adults. As an accommodation BART allows folded bikes at all times.”

here’s what I say: weak!
and while I’m at it I’ll just say that if there was a bike lane on the Bay Bridge, I’d be outta your way, and gladly.

In the past there used to be a dedicated last car on the BART trains – they have since eliminated that….b/s….The last car during rush hour is NEVER full – I ride back there with my bike everyday during the rush hour commute…granted it is the opposite direction of traffic though.

Confining bicyclists to one car is a saftey risk? Really? Isnt a maxed out train holding 2000 people a risk anyways? Look at teh stairs in every bart station dwtn during rush hour….specially embarcadero….its a 3 minute wait to get up the stairs.

Please understand that I know you were quoting someone else, squashimi. Im not trying to call you out! carry on!